Applejack gulped nervously as she looked herself over in the mirror. It wasn't like her to be this concerned about her appearance. Normally, she would have given her mane a very quick once-over with a brush, then donned her hat and called her preparations a success. Today was different. She'd actually spent an entire half-hour just fussing over her mane, making sure there wasn't a strand out of place, and yet she still wasn't perfectly satisfied. She figured that this must be what it was like to be Rarity as she brushed her ponytail out for the umpteenth time. At the same time, she took solace in the fact that taking care of her mane had not taken nearly as long as the makeup fiasco she'd been through before she'd begun her manecare. Granny Smith's laughter upon seeing her oldest granddaughter's makeup disaster was more raucous than she'd heard in a long time. Thankfully, Granny was able to push it aside long enough to show her how to properly apply it.
Today was certainly different, even though Applejack knew deep in her heart that it didn't have to be. There was really no practical need to do any of this. Fluttershy had fallen in love with her for who she normally was, not some painted-up, hair-perfectly-styled mockery of herself. Fluttershy would certainly be just as happy if she showed up without the fancy-schmancy makeup and mane style as she would be if she did. At this point she could wear a potato sack on one of their date nights and Fluttershy likely wouldn't mind. She glanced at herself in the mirror and briefly considered washing the makeup off. It just wasn't natural. Heck, the last time she even wore the stuff was...one year ago. Exactly one year today. Easily the happiest day of both of their lives, and certainly high up there in the lives of their friends and family. AJ remembered that day with such vivid detail that she could recite each event of the day in chronological order. Fluttershy was always a beautiful pony, but on that day, she was so positively stunning that the farmer found herself incapable of putting it into words.
Standing in front of her bathroom mirror, Applejack lost herself in the memory of that day. She watched the love of her life walk down that aisle, the train of her exquisite dress flowing like a pearl river behind her. Her wings splayed out of their own accord upon seeing Applejack, stirring up a little blush as she struggled to fold them demurely by her sides. She soon joined Applejack on the altar, and the two stared, unable to take their eyes off of each other. The pegasus' long pink mane had been tied back into a neat bun, save for a single bang that dangled just off to the right of her forehead, and accented with a darker pink lily. Applejack appreciated this manestyle greatly. She loved her usual manestyle, but the more of that lovely face she could see, the better. She was so lost in Fluttershy's soft blue eyes that she nearly missed the minister requesting her response to the vows. She watched the happy tears in her new wife's eyes, feeling her own reciprocate. She could barely wait to kiss her blushing bride, and leaned forward...
"Never knew you to be that narcissistic, child!"
Applejack snapped out of her reverie at the sound of Granny Smith's teasing. She opened her eyes and was greeted with a reflection of her pursed lips hanging mere inches away from the bathroom mirror. An awkward chuckle accompanied her quick posture fix, and was joined by a chortle from the Apple family matron.
"H-howdy, Granny Smith," AJ stammered. "Uh...I was just..." The elder pony placed a hoof on her shoulder, silencing her.
"Ahh, young love," Granny Smith swooned. "You don't have to explain a thing, Applejack." She then narrowed her eyes a bit. "You ruined the mascara, child." AJ turned back to the mirror. Sure enough, the tears in her memory had found their way to the present. She touched one of the black streaks trailing down from her right eye. Something about it just made her smirk.
"You want I should help you fix that, child?" Granny offered. Applejack shook her head with a smile.
"Nah," she answered. "I think we can just wash it off. Somehow I don't think Shy'll mind."
~~~~~~~~~~
Fluttershy found herself staring into the mirror, wondering if she'd put enough makeup on. She'd been in the bathroom for what felt like hours trying to find the perfect balance of natural and manufactured beauty. Eye shadow was applied and removed within minutes. Eye liner didn't last much longer. The bathroom counter had a number of used tissues littering its surface; some with removed blush smudged on them, others with different-colored kiss prints from lipsticks she'd since decided against. In fact, she wasn't even positive she needed lipstick at all...but then again, with the right accompaniments, it just completed the look. A complete look was a must; everything had to be perfect for Applejack. She, too, knew deep in her heart that Applejack found her beautiful regardless of makeup status. AJ had seen her at her most stunning and her most unattractive, and she loved her just the same on both ends of the spectrum and everywhere in between. Something in her, though, just felt the need to doll herself up. Maybe it was the reaction that her appearance had caused in the farmer a year ago today.
She still remembered how nervous she was before making her entrance that day. It took the combined efforts of Twilight and Rarity to calm her nerves enough to set her walking. When she saw Applejack waiting for her, though, it was as if all of her trepidations had just faded away. At least until her wings spread out, but that was only a minor inconvenience. She couldn't have stopped the kneejerk reaction if she'd tried, though. Her love had gone all out on her appearance that day. AJ's mane and tail were impeccably braided, and she'd even put on makeup, despite her usual opinion that it was "too frou-frou for her." Rarity had gone to lengths to create an outfit that just screamed Applejack, and had clearly knocked it out of the park. A neat, coltish blouse, styled and collared like a tuxedo top, adorned her upper body, and merged seamlessly into a stylish little dress covering her rear half. A cute little set of boots on her front hooves and a white hat with a flower and a long, trailing veil completed the package. Fluttershy wondered what she'd done to be so lucky as she stood next to her beloved on the altar. Whatever it was, she was thankful that she'd done it.
"You okay, sis?" asked a small voice from the door. Fluttershy blinked a few times as she returned to the present. She smiled lightly to her little sister-in-law.
"Oh...yes, I'm fine, thank you," she replied.
"Oh, good," Apple Bloom said. "Cause you were kinda spacing out for a bit there." The filly trotted up to join Fluttershy at the counter, hopping up onto the stepstool next to her so she could be at eye-level with the mirror. Fluttershy ruffled her mane, then turned back to the mirror, once again setting her scrutinizing gaze upon her makeup.
"Whatcha doing, Fluttershy?" Bloom asked, nudging a little closer.
"Oh, I'm just fixing my makeup to go out with Applejack tonight," the pegasus answered, causing Bloom to roll her eyes.
"I know that," the filly said with a small pout. "Applejack's been talking about your anniversary dinner for days! I mean why? You don't gotta do that to make Applejack think you're pretty." The pegasus stopped, looking at Bloom curiously. After a moment, she gave her a soft smile.
"You're absolutely right, sis," Fluttershy said, patting her on the head. "Could you pass me a washcloth?"
~~~~~~~~~~
"You look stunning, honeycrisp," Applejack said of her wife on their walk to the restaurant. The nickname had become a favorite of theirs. According to the farmer, the honeycrisp was one of the sweetest apple varieties there was. Fluttershy, of course, was in no position to question this. If Applejack said something about apples, it was almost certainly true. Besides, she wasn't looking to call it into question, as she rather liked the pet name.
"Not as stunning as you, Jackie," Fluttershy replied, giving her a gentle nuzzle. She waited for her love to take the bait, but the farmer shook her head.
"Nuh-uh, we ain't doing this," AJ told her. "We'll be going back and forth all night if I don't nip it in the bud right here." The two shared a laugh as they arrived at their destination. Just the sight of the restaurant filled Fluttershy with delight. The two had gone to this cafe for their first official date somewhere around two and a half years ago, after the expensive restaurant that AJ had made reservations at had accidentally overbooked.
"Might not be the fanciest place for an anniversary dinner," the farmer said, giving her wife a little wink. "But I kinda get the feeling you don't mind, right?" A giggle and a tender kiss answered her question.
The dinner was wonderful. Applejack made sure of that. She'd even made sure that they each ate the same meal they'd eaten on their first date. If she could, she would have even requested the same wait staff, but that was a bit out of her control. The two decided to add a bit of wine to their meal, one of the few things that was different from the events of the night that tonight was meant to emulate. AJ had decided against it way back when, as she wasn't aware of Shy's limits when it came to alcohol. By this point, though, AJ was well aware of how much was too much for her. At the same time, this also meant that she knew how much was just enough to get her to an adorable state of playfulness. The farmer made sure to stop bringing the wine once she felt Fluttershy begin to play hoofsies with her under the table. As far as public displays of affection went, this was intensely intimate behavior for the pegasus, and a good place to cut her off.
A little game of hoofsies wasn't the only reason for Applejack introducing alcohol to their special night, however fun said game happened to be. In truth, she'd been stressing for the last few weeks over how to finally bring her deepest desires up to Fluttershy. It was something she'd mulled over for a good, long time now, but she wasn't quite sure how to bring it up to her dear wife. She worried that Fluttershy would not share this desire, and the possible rejection had the potential to cause huge strains in their marriage. To be honest, Applejack was surprised that she'd even been able to hide this potentially pernicious proclivity from her partner for so long. It wasn't like she was even the only pony who had these desires. She'd met plenty of ponies who had not only shared her interests, but been lucky enough to find a partner who felt the same way. It had surprised her a while back when she'd found out that Mr. and Mrs. Cake were into it, and she even knew for a fact that her own parents had engaged in it a few times. Whether or not it was morally right was not an issue for Applejack. The sole reason for her worried was the fact that it was not a lifestyle choice that Fluttershy would find appealing.
Applejack sighed lightly to herself as she finished off the remainder of her last glass of wine. Her alcohol tolerance was a lot better than that of her wife, and she wasn't yet feeling loose-lipped enough to spill the beans to Fluttershy. At the same time, she knew that she had to tell her somehow. In her mind, it was already wrong of her to hold such a thing back for so long. Not only wrong, but selfish too. As a married couple, they weren't supposed to keep secrets like this from each other, even if the threat of putting their relationship in jeopardy existed. She looked across the table at the slightly-buzzed Fluttershy. She loved that pony for everything she was, and Fluttershy loved her for everything she knew about her. Applejack knew that she needed to tell Fluttershy about her desire right here and right now, or else it would just eat her up inside.
"I won!" Fluttershy suddenly said, giggling. Applejack tilted her head and realized that in her distraction, she'd let Fluttershy pin her hoof down. She grinned nervously.
"Heh...yeah, you did," the farmer said.
"I never beat you in hoofsies!" Fluttershy mused. "How did that even happen?" The pegasus suddenly set a worried gaze on her wife. "I-is everything okay?" AJ took a deep breath. It had to be now. Fluttershy had to know.
"Well..." the farm pony said, looking away for a moment. "There's....something that's been on my mind."
"What is it?" Fluttershy asked. AJ's nervousness was obvious, and Shy gently rubbed her leg under the table with her victorious hoof, hoping to calm her nerves.
"I've...kind of been having these desires for a while," AJ admitted, trying her best to make eye contact with her love. "And I wanted to bring them up with you, but I was worried that you might not feel the same way." She fiddled with her front hooves as she finally managed to stare right into Fluttershy's eyes. "And I don't want to lose you if you don't share these desires." She stopped there, trying to gauge Shy's reaction. When she was silent for a moment, AJ let her gaze drop to the table. She didn't say a word until she saw a yellow hoof reach across the table and gently pin her own nervous hooves.
"I love you, Applejack," Fluttershy said softly. "No matter what desires you have, even if I don't share them, I'll always love you. You filled the hole in my heart, and nothing will ever change that." AJ looked back into those soft blue eyes, feeling a sniffle coming on. It was now or never, and the latter wasn't really a viable option at this point. One more deep breath sealed the deal.
"...I want a foal," Applejack said. She stared straight into Fluttershy's eyes, trying to read her reaction. The moment of silence that proceeded her admission was a tense one for her. Her expression began to turn from one of hope to one of trepidation, fearing once again that Shy would not reciprocate her feelings on the matter. Her fears were quickly alleviated, though, as Fluttershy's eyes lit up, twinkling like the night sky.
"Oh, Applejack..." Fluttershy responded, nearly a whisper. "So do I."
Applejack could barely believe her ears. She felt her fears dissipate, replaced by a happiness that she could barely put into words. Without a moment's hesitation, she slipped her hind hoof out from Fluttershy's not-so-powerful pin and leaned across the table. Fluttershy, too caught up in the moment to worry about who would see her, leaned forward to engage her wife in a deep kiss. It wasn't until a catcall came from a nearby table that the two finally broke contact and sat back down, blushing.
"So...why did you think I wouldn't want to have a foal?" Shy finally asked, breaking the silence. Applejack ran a hoof through her own mane, looking a tad sheepish.
"I kinda thought you had enough on your hooves with all the animals you take care of," AJ responded. "A foal would be a lot of extra work."
"A lot of extra work that we'd share," Fluttershy responded. "And nothing would make me happier than to share it with you." She smiled, but then hid behind a bit of her mane. "I've been thinking about it for a while too..."
"You have?" Applejack exclaimed. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Um...mostly the same reason, actually..." the pegasus responded. "You work so hard on the farm..."
"And I still would!" AJ answered quickly. "The rest of the family and I share the work pretty evenly already. I'm sure it'd be doable. 'Sides, I'm sure they'd all be real happy to have a new addition to the family." The two ponies smiled warmly to each other, excited at the possibilities of their shared desires becoming a reality. This lasted for all of ten seconds before Fluttershy's smile faded.
"Um...but how would we have one?" the meek pegasus asked. AJ opened her mouth, but then stopped.
"...Huh," she said, tapping her hoof to her chin. "I hadn't thought that far ahead. I was kinda stuck on figuring out how to bring the idea up."
"Well...how about adoption?" Fluttershy asked. AJ tapped her front hooves together nervously.
"Uh...to tell the truth," the farmer said, "I kinda thought we should have one of our own somehow. I mean, adoption's great and all, but having a foal actually related to at least one of us by blood is what I really wanted." She smiled an awkward smile, hoping that this logic was enough for Fluttershy. She knew it had a few holes in it, but it was really something that was important to her, and she needed Fluttershy to accept this. Her heart nearly skipped a beat when Shy nodded with a smile.
"That would be nice..." Fluttershy said. "Um...but how?" AJ hummed to herself.
"Ain't there some kind of spell that Twilight could use?" the farmer asked. "She knows all kinds of spells, and with how many mares there are..."
"A-actually..." Fluttershy interrupted, "I'd been reading up on that kind of thing...but the closest thing I could find was a gender-changing spell, and Twilight's said herself that such a spell is a bit much for her." AJ sighed lightly. She wasn't particularly looking to spend any time as a stallion anyway, but if that was the only way, then she would have gone through with it. The two shared a moment of mutual silence before Applejack suddenly got to thinking. She had a crazy idea, one that she doubted Fluttershy would have much interest in. Still, if they both wanted a foal so bad, it was worth asking.
"...Honeycrisp?" AJ asked.
"Yes, Jackie?" Fluttershy replied.
"Um...I'd do anything to have a foal," she continued. "You would too, right?"
"I would," Fluttershy told her, nodding without hesitation. AJ reached across the table, taking one of Shy's hooves in hers and smiling nervously.
"Then hear me out on this."